Possible dead cylinder

[dantheman85x]

Hey guys,

My buddy is pretty good with trucks, and he seems to think my '88 7.3 F250 has a dead cylinder.

It drove fine up until recently when I had a couple of water hoses bust and it overheated a couple times. We replaced the hoses, and also the fuel pump, which we thought was causing another problem (which I'll get to in a minute).

After bleeding the fuel line, and letting the truck sit for a couple days, it started up, but seems to be driving and idling (especially) a little rougher.

The truck has always blown a bit of blue smoke, which I know means it's burning oil, but that was only when I started it up, not while driving.

Now, when starting, it is pretty darn rough, and I'm getting a good amount of blue smoke.

I should add that since I've had the truck (almost a year) I've had to ether it to get it started.... and I know you guys all just cringed. I know it's bad for the motor and everything but it's the only way it'll start unless it's been already running and I'm starting it within about 40 minutes of it last running.

I would not be surprised if the ethering plus the overheating finally caused a cylinder to blow, and at some point my truck-savvy buddy and I will run a compression test to confirm/deny this. But right now, I'm going to assume I have a blown cylinder or two and I'm running on 6-7.

What are the signs of this?

Also, in regard to the hard/non starting, should I try to replace the injection pump? I know the glow plugs are fairly new, and after replacing the fuel pump, I know it's not that. Is there a check valve?

I appreciate any insight into this situation.

I really like this truck and really don't want to get rid of it. I'd almost consider putting a new motor in it instead of getting a different one.